The move is likely a wake-up call for the countless numbers of entry-level traders who have signed up to Bitfinex in recent months as cryptocurrency trading expands significantly.

Influxes of ‘newbies’ have occurred across major exchanges, which pointed to the phenomenon as a major cause of reduced support services and slow performance.

Bitfinex’s announcement comes a day after it addressed its own support shortcomings, saying it had increased staff numbers “five-fold” in the past two months.

“The past six months have been unlike anything we have ever experienced as cryptocurrencies have reached an unprecedented level of coverage,” the post reads.

“It took five years to handle three bln orders on Bitfinex – in the last four months alone, we have handled more than one bln orders.”

Support tickets increased in a similar manner, with half of all inquiries ever received originating since April 2017.

The decision to charge a fee, seemingly the first in the exchange business, received shrewd responses, with celebrated trader and commentator WhalePanda suggesting support capabilities could likewise benefit from the $25 injections.

Everyone can make a mistake at some point, but at least it should weed out the tiny deposits. It allows them to hire more support staff too.